A variety of grab bar assemblies are presently available for assisting users between seated and standing positions. Often, those grab bars are placed in environments such as restrooms to help handicapped or elderly persons to move between a standing and a seated position. Many of the present devices use stationary bars that are bolted or otherwise attached to a wall and disposed where the person using the device may grasp the bar with his or her hands to facilitate movement between the seated and standing positions. Other devices use pivots or a combination of pivots and springs to permit movement of the grab bar from a stored location to a location proximate the user to save space yet render the device accessible to the user.
The simple fixed grab bars are adequate in many situations, but they can be obstructive and actually hinder movement of the user, particularly when placed in environments having limited space. Other devices that can be pivoted either vertically or horizontally can prove to be less stable or may also be difficult to store.
Some grab bar assemblies use a spring, such as a coil spring, to bias the grab bar to a stored position. For example, one type of grab bar is connected to a base by a pivot shaft and incorporates a coil spring to bias the grab bar upwardly to a generally vertical stored position along the wall. However, the user may grasp the bar and pull it downwardly to a generally horizontal position where the bar is held in that position by gravitational force. Thus, the person may use the bar for assistance in moving between seated or standing positions and then lift the bar with the aid of the coil spring to the vertical stored position. One problem with conventional devices of this type is the complexity of the spring mechanism that renders the assembly more complex and more expensive to manufacture.
It would be advantageous to provide a grab bar assembly having an easily usable grab bar and a simple, dependable spring hinge capable of holding the grab bar in a stored position.